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Bruce Murray Space Image Library

Pluto's tenuous atmosphere

Pluto's tenuous atmosphere
Pluto's tenuous atmosphere Artist's impression of Pluto's huge atmosphere of carbon monoxide. The source of this gas is erratic evaporation from the mottled icy surface of the dwarf planet. The Sun appears at the top, as seen in the ultra-violet radiation that is thought to force some of the dramatic atmospheric changes. Pluto's largest moon, Charon, is seen to the lower right. P.A.S. Cruickshank